Quick Poll

How much do you plan to spend on Christmas presents this year compared to last?

Blogs

Angela McRae

Tea with friends

Lorrie Lynch

Who's News

Published Thursday, August 07, 2008 in Close-Up

Contributed Photo

S'mores ice cream pie

Spend s'more time in the kitchen with these recipes

National S'mores Day is Aug. 10, and The Hershey Company is giving consumers one more reason to celebrate with a collection of new recipes and cooking tips to create s'mores treats for every taste.

For more than 80 years, families and friends have gathered around the campfire to indulge in the classic combination of s'mores -milk chocolate, gooey marshmallows and crisp grahams. No longer are s'mores reserved for only campfire cooking - the backyard grill, oven and even microwave can make this treat just as tasty. Encouraging families to have 's'more' fun this National S'mores Day, the experts at The Hershey's Kitchens are teaching consumers how to add the fun flavor of s'mores to every occasion at www.smoresfun.com .

"S'mores have always been a campfire favorite, but families don't have to head out to the woods to enjoy National S'mores Day this year," said Linda Stahl of The Hershey's Kitchens.

S'mores are a quick and easy dessert to complete any backyard barbeque when cooked on the grill. Start by placing half of a Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar on half of a Honey Maid Grahams Cracker. Then, carefully toast a large Jet-Puffed Marshmallow over a grill preheated to medium, and place it on top of the Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar. Finally, top the perfectly melted marshmallow with the remaining graham cracker half and gently press together for a delicious treat. Or to make "s'more" s'mores at once, assemble half of a Honey Maid Grahams Cracker, Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar and Jet-Puffed Marshmallow topped with the second half of the Honey Maid Grahams Cracker and wrap it in aluminum foil. Place the foil pocket on the grill and cook for two minutes. The result is a warm, gooey treat.

Invite guests to build their own s'mores recipes with variations of the classic treat. Try Chocolate Banana S'mores embellished with small slices of banana and Peanutty S'mores with a thin layer of peanut butter spread on the Honey Maid Grahams Cracker. For dark chocolate lovers, try indulging in a recipe featuring a Hershey's Special Dark Semi-Sweet Chocolate bar on a Honey Maid Grahams Cracker, topped with a grilled Jet-Puffed Marshmallow.

If the rain just won't go away, families also can enjoy s'mores indoors. S'mores Ice Cream Pie is frozen with vanilla or chocolate ice cream. Looking for a quick and easy recipe? Try Easy S'mores Clusters. Simply break and heat six Hershey's Milk Chocolate bars in the microwave, and stir in two cups of Jet-Puffed Miniature Marshmallows and eight coarsely chopped Honey Maid Grahams Crackers. Then drop spoonfuls of the mix into miniature paper muffin cups, cover and refrigerate until firm. This simple treat will brighten any rainy day.

To find recipes like these, visit www.smoresfun.com .

[The Times-Herald Food page featured an incomplete version of the S'More Cookie Bars recipe Aug. 7. Below is the corrected recipe]:

S'More Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 (1.55 oz. each) HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bars

1 cup marshmallow creme

Instructions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8-inch square baking pan.

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt; add to butter mixture, beating until blended. Press half of dough into prepared pan.

Arrange chocolate bars over dough, breaking as needed to fit. Spread with marshmallow creme. Scatter bits of remaining dough over marshmallow; carefully press to form a layer.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. 16 bars.

S'mores Ice Cream Pie

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

------

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

------

1/4 cup sugar

------

4 cups vanilla or chocolate ice cream, slightly softened

------

3 cups miniature marshmallows

----

4 (1.55 oz. each) HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bars, finely chopped

------

Whipped topping or sweetened whipped cream (optional)

------

Additional graham cracker pieces, miniature marshmallows and chopped HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bars (optional)

Butter bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate.

Stir together graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar until well blended. Press crumb mixture evenly on bottom and up sides of prepared pie plate. Freeze 5 minutes before filling.

Stir together ice cream, marshmallows and chocolate bar pieces; spoon into crust. Cover; freeze until firm.

Soften slightly to serve. Garnish with whipped topping, graham cracker pieces, marshmallows and chocolate bar pieces, if desired.

8 servings.